Why Julie Chrisley Initially Refused To Marry Todd
Anyone watching an episode of "Chrisley Knows Best" could easily believe that Todd and Julie Chrisley's relationship was meant to be, and their marriage has been going strong for over two decades. However, this close-knit but controversial reality TV couple almost never got their romance off the ground. In mid-2023, daughter Savannah Chrisley shared a surprising untold truth about Julie on an episode of her podcast, "Unlocked With Savannah Chrisley." According to Savannah, Julie refused to marry Todd — twice.
According to Savannah, Julie's pregnancy with her older brother Chase Chrisley was something she wanted to face alone. "[Julie] got pregnant, and she told my dad, she was like, 'I am not marrying you. This is my baby. I'm gonna raise my baby. If you want to be involved in his life you can, but I'm raising my child,'" she said (via YouTube).
As Savannah explained, her father's status as a recently divorced father of two made her mother wary of committing to a long-term relationship with him. However, Savannah says Todd didn't take Julie's initial response as a final answer. "He asked her twice, and she told him no. And now, look at 'em, 27 years later," she recalled. Although the Chrisleys didn't have a storybook connection initially, they have remained committed to their marriage, even while behind bars.
Their prison sentences haven't hindered their connection
Although they enjoyed a lavish life on screen, Todd and Julie Chrisley found themselves facing an unprecedented situation when they each began serving multi-year prison sentences in January 2023. For the first time since getting married in 1996, the couple found themselves living separately, housed in different prisons with several states between them. This arrangement made it extremely difficult for the Chrisleys to communicate with each other, and the adjustment was undoubtedly difficult to make. However, it appears that even being miles apart didn't put a damper on this famous marriage. In August 2023, their lawyer Jay Surgent told Fox News that the Chrisleys "continue to love each other very much" despite not having spoken to each other since their sentences began.
It's easy to maintain a commitment after just a few months, but the Chrisleys appeared to be going strong even over a year after their incarceration began. In June 2024, Julie was due to be resentenced, and rumors began to circulate that Todd was concerned about his wife finding a new mate if she was released from prison before him. However, Surgent once again stepped in to dispel any concerns about the couple's union. "Julie is devoted to him. She loves him," he explained to Radar.
She may have once had misgivings about marrying Todd, but Julie's own letters from prison show just how difficult it was to be separated from her long-time spouse. As daughter Savannah Chrisley shared in her podcast, the realization that Todd and she were going to be so far apart was heartbreaking for Julie, who wrote: "What a sobering thought, the man I had lived with, raised a family with and loved more than life itself is now temporarily residing in Florida, and me in Kentucky" (via People). Unfortunately, Todd's decade-long sentence means the couple will have to wait many more years to be reunited.